Omnia 3FM

Hello and thanks for reading my post. I'm gonna be putting my LPFM on the air pretty soon and I'd like to ask a question about FM Audio Processing. I ordered the software from Telos to convert my Omnia 3AM to an Omnia 3FM. Is it possible to listen to the deemphasized output of the 3FM with headphones to get and idea of what the station would sound like on the air? I've listened to it, it sounds pretty good. Some of the presets sound too dense (CHR, Hot AC, Country). I don't have my transmitter yet but I'll be running a BW Broadcast TX300 V2 (internal audio processor disabled of course). Any comments you might have on the Omnia 3FM or FM Audio Processing would be appreciated.

Regards,

Bill - KJ6EO
KZNQ-LP 101.5 (Santa Clarita, CA)

There's not much more subjective in this business than audio processing. We're all right (in our own minds) and mostly wrong (in everyone else's).

All of the processors out there have strengths and weaknesses, based on your ears and budget. Technically though, it's hard to go wrong with any of them. Even the two popular software packages do a good job if you set them up right.

If it sounds good to you, especially if you can listen to it continuously for an hour and it doesn't hurt your ears, and fits your format, you've probably made a good choice.

There are some variables in how to get from the processor to the transmitter, depending on whether they're in the same building or not. Again, we all have our preferences. A digital path is probably best, if logistics and budget allow, but composite will work well, too.

BW is good stuff. I have a lot of it here and, except for a couple of power supply failures, haven't had any notable problems.

Mr. Grid -

Thanks for your reply and advice. I'm gonna STL to the transmitter site with two Barix codec's. If that doesn't work out, I'll have to go the much more expensive RF route. The Omnia 3 sounded great on AM with a Compellor in front of it. So I'm looking forward to hearing it on FM. The Compellor seems to make the Omnia 3 sound warmer. The sharp edges of a digital processor can fatigue me sometimes. Remember the good old days with 2 Texar Audio Prisims in front of an Orban 8100a? Nice!

kj6eo said:

The sharp edges of a digital processor can fatigue me sometimes. Remember the good old days with 2 Texar Audio Prisims in front of an Orban 8100a? Nice!

Click to expand...

I do. There still are analog adherents out there. Like I said... if it fits what you're trying to make of it, you've at least done some study and your choice is likely right for you.

If you're shooting wireless for STL... 5.8gHz unlicensed or the like, the Ubiquiti radios are pretty good and reasonably priced. I have a couple of them in service, set up with Barix at each end, and they work well. Another site I take care of has fiber from the studio to transmitter. I have Bric-Links on that setup.

Good luck with your new station!

The left and right outputs from the Omnia 3 are processed, but not pre-emphasized. Have plenty of level to drive most headphones--you just need to wire two female XLR's to a 1/4 inch jack for the headphones, or feed an amp & speakers. On one station I have, I need to feed the main transmitter, a back-up and a composite STL to a booster. The two composite feeds go to the main and the booster STL, the L & R outputs feed an 8100 that doesn't have either the 3&4 compressor cards or the clippers in Card 5--just the filters and stereo geni. This feeds the back-up, sounds fine.

Now, on STL link. Check closely on the TX300--can you just drive the built in stereo generator? If you are using a pair of Barix boxes, you might want to use the L & R outputs of the Omnia to feed the Barix, keeping the processor at the studio, then feed processed audio into the BW's stereo geni. Of course, you can also put the Omnia at the transmitter and feed it composite.